Milestones
by pfeffi
Summary: Promises made, promises kept, and life thereafter. —ChihayaArata.


**notes -**

wow, this was ultimately a joy to write, although i did have my ups and downs with it. this thing has been in the works for ages - so much research! if anyone's interested in seeing any notes on it, you can find them on my writing blog, _saiyuu_ at tumblr.

enjoy!

* * *

It starts with a promise.

Arata moves to Tokyo to go to university, and in the same month, confesses his feelings once again. This time, instead of watching him shy away, Chihaya boldly responds and leaves them both rosy. She also goes to university in Tokyo; although their schools are not the same, they make it so that they are able to see each other as often as possible. The thrill of being so close to each other is a thrill that never quite leaves them. (Chihaya tells him one afternoon that he has never felt so real to her—not since elementary school. He responds by kissing her fingertips, because there is nothing to say.)

Taichi goes to school in Okinawa. He comes to visit them now and again, and sometimes they go to visit him, but mostly they stay in touch through phone calls and emails. Chihaya makes him swear not to give up karuta; he responds by sending her a picture of the hall where they hold matches. That's good enough for her.

Arata becomes Meijin in his first year of college. At nineteen, he is the youngest Meijin to date. He takes the title from Harada, as it happens. The doctor held the honor for two years and is happy to retire his position knowing that he achieved his lifelong dream. When the match is over, he rises and puts his hand on Arata's shoulder. He smiles and says, low enough so only they can hear:

"Last time, I faced your grandfather. This time, I faced you."

It is one of the best praises Arata has ever been given and he is eternally grateful that the cameras turn to Harada first so he can make a concession speech.

Meanwhile, Chihaya is in tears. She can't quite decide if she's crying for Harada or Arata, the old king or the new, but she cries anyway. When Arata turns to face her, bearing a smile, she rushes forward and throws her arms around him, repeating over and over: "You did it! You did it! You're the best in the world!"

He imagines his grandfather smiling, to complete the moment, and laughs and cries at the same time.

Chihaya climbs her way up the ranks and in her third year she faces down Shinobu for a second time—only this time, she takes the queen title for her own.

There's a moment, right after the girls bow to each other, where Chihaya says absolutely nothing. Her eyes are as wide as dinner plates and her fingers are twitching; she's in shock. It's unreal. It's impossible. That can't be Shinobu going to make a few remarks about passing on the title. That can't be Arata beaming, with the corners of his glasses fogging up and sweat beading on his brow from his own match. That can't be Taichi, or Kana, or Sumire, or Komano, or Tsukuba, or Nishida laughing, embracing each other. That can't be Harada smiling, that can't be Miyauchi-sensei wiping her eyes—it can't _be._

But, it is.

It is, and it's causing her heart to race and her ears to buzz. The laugh escapes her before she can stop it and the next thing she knows, she's smiling and scrubbing away the tears that are leaking from her eyes. Her parents and Chitose are the first to approach her, the former pair wrapping her in their arms and the latter gruffly (affectionately) commenting that _okay,_ _she's pretty great. Congratulations. _

Then she's moved over to Arata who gazes at her like she's the only thing that matters in the universe, and Shinobu approaches—with the cameraman hot at her heels—and elbows her lightly, throwing her a private, crooked smirk. _Next year you won't be so lucky_, it says playfully.

Chihaya's all bubbles and laughter when she gives her few words to the camera. When she gets home, though, she's mellowed to fizzy smiles and tingling fingertips. She's lying in bed when she finally lets it wash over her that she really _won_, and something soft settles in the corners of her heart. She is the queen and Arata is the king, and their elementary dreams have come true.

This warmth fuels her for the next few days, but cools when a strange panic sets in. Her dream _has_ come true, and so has Arata's. She doesn't have another dream like this one. What's left for her—for them? Now what are they supposed to do? Where are they supposed to go?

She confides in Arata, admitting these fears to him. He's washing dishes when she tells him, and has to turn off the tap and dry his hands before lifting his head and staring at the ceiling with a pondering expression.

"I guess we'll have to find new dreams. But we don't have to find them right away. While we're looking—and even after we've found them—we can keep playing karuta. New doors will open up for us and we'll just go through them, one by one. And," he smiles lopsidedly here, "for now, we have titles to defend."

His words spark the warmth in her again and she returns his smile, only hers is ten times brighter. He chuckles and watches her fondly as she goes through the options that they may have, and how there are still tournaments they can play in, and how they still have their karuta clubs to mentor.

"Hey, Arata, let's never stop playing karuta, okay?" She says, catching his hands with hers.

It ends with a promise, too.

/

Arata doesn't admit it to Chihaya until much, much later, but the day she becomes queen he also promises himself that, when she beats him a certain number of times and after he's become a doctor and has a steady income, he'll propose to her. It's an odd set of requirements—this Shinobu tells him almost daily—but he sticks to it. So closely that he almost proposes to her in the middle of a karuta competition.

It happens in August. The tournament standings pit them against each other, which both amuses and excites them. The crowd that gathers in the room melts away as they play, swiping at cards and just barely letting their fingertips brush. In this moment, karuta feels less like a competition and more like a game of tag: _try and catch me before I get this next card. _The last card read, coincidentally, is Chihaya's card and it sails away from him before he even has a chance to swing. They bow to each other and immediately after, laugh. Chihaya looks at him like he's the only one in the world and it hits Arata what number win this is.

"Chihaya, I—" He starts, and then realizes where they are and who's around them, so he quickly recovers: "—love you."

She smiles confusedly, but the roses still blossom in her cheeks and she responds in kind. _How sweet_, the crowd behind him coos. He sighs at the closeness of it all.

Later, when they have a moment alone, he tries again.

Chihaya doesn't say yes immediately; instead, she drops onto the ground right in front of him and flings her arms around his neck, pulling him close to her. She laughs and cries—this seems to be a recurring thing for them—into his shoulder and when she dries her tears, she gives him a very enthusiastic: "Yes!"

They get married in autumn, and take their wedding pictures against a crimson-leaved background. Kana names the photo album 'A Bright Red Love Song.' Some days, Arata takes the album out and traces the gold letters on the cover and smiles, soft and warm. Chihaya will come up behind him, nestle her head in the crook of his shoulder, and tell him to turn the page. And when he doesn't, when he takes too long, she'll do it for him and grin at his chuckle.

(The swift waters parted by jagged rocks have come together again.)

/

The newlyweds continue to live with Shinobu—with whom they've been sharing an apartment with since their third year of university—for about five months before they make the tough decision to move out. Shinobu treats the news the way she would an honorable defeat, with a smile that covers any traces of sadness, and a fairly quick retreat. They give her, and themselves, a day before broaching the topic again. This time, Shinobu is much more accepting of the news. She insists that she go with them on their house-hunting trips and refuses to take no for an answer (it was never an option). She likes to think that, when it comes to their monetary funds, with the exception of excessive Snowmaru merchandise spending, she's the most sensible of the three of them—and she's probably right.

House-hunting proves to be a much more difficult experience than any of them had expected. Their main problem is that each of them have very different schedules which means that there's only so much time in the day that they can dedicate to going out with their realtor and looking at places. Of all of their schedules, Arata's is the most flexible; because he works at a private practice, he is able to organize his hours so that they fit with Chihaya's school hours and Shinobu's work schedule.

In their fourth week of house-hunting (none of them had actually realized quite how _big_ Tokyo is), Chihaya suggests that maybe they look outside of Tokyo. It's nearly summer, she says, which means that she could start looking into getting a teaching position at a different school, and Arata could potentially move practices.

Shinobu reluctantly agrees that maybe it's for the best, and a while later, both Chihaya and Arata have secured interviews in Saitama and are looking for houses there.

And then, they find it.

It's a quaint house, fitting squarely in their price range. The former owners liked the traditionally styled house, with sliding doors and tatami mats on the ground. It's in a nice neighborhood, not too noisy, and very close to a bus stop that takes them right to the train station.

But that's not what makes Chihaya falls in love with it. To her, the best part is a small room in the back, with a little window that reminds her so much of _that room_, the one they used to play in all those years ago.

"This is the house for us," she declares excitedly.

"I like it," Arata agrees.

Shinobu doesn't quite get where their excitement comes from—this happens a lot when her two friends are involved—but she knows the story all too well and she's not going to stop them if this is the house they want. So she gives that quirky little smile of hers that says she approves, and laughs when Chihaya flings her arms around her and jumps up and down.

July marks the end of their stay with Shinobu and the beginning of their lives in Saitama. There are plenty of tears shed—on Chihaya's part, anyway—when they say goodbye and promises that they will visit each other soon, that they will see each other on the tatami mats of nearing competitions. The drive, which isn't all that long, feels like forever and Chihaya spends the majority of it with her face pressed against the window.

"Well, we're here," Arata says, parking the car. They'd borrowed it from Komano, just for this trip.

They climb out of the car and start to unload the trunk, picking out the smallest boxes first. Chihaya fishes around in her bag for the keys and hands them to her husband, who manages to open the door whilst balancing boxes in his arms. He pushes it open with his foot and they walk in. Dust dances around in the sunlight that filters in through the windows.

"So," Arata says, "this is it. Welcome home."

Chihaya's eyes grow bright as it sinks in. "Our home," she whispers, lovingly, and sets her boxes down.

/

They try for a child in early May, two years after marriage, and the tests confirm Chihaya's pregnancy by mid-month. They consider themselves lucky.

Having a child, however, is a challenge unlike any they have ever faced, and it's quite daunting for the both of them. There are a lot of things they have to consider: where to put the baby's room, how to tell their parents that they'll be grandparents, when to tell their friends, what to name the baby—it hits them all at once and they realize, belatedly, that maybe they should have already started to consider some of these things.

But they take every challenge in stride. They pick a room close to theirs, one of the only ones with carpet flooring, and turn it into a nursery, painting the walls a mint-green and decorating the windows with flowers. Both Chihaya's and Arata's parents are ecstatic at the news and chip in as well, giving them everything from baby clothes to plush animals to high-chairs. When they tell their friends, they're all quick to throw gifts their way, too.

The toughest challenge comes in the form of karuta.

As queen, Chihaya has no intention of retiring. She's going to play the queen match against whomever—Shinobu or Ririka, most likely—and have the baby, too. The increasing size of her belly makes it harder for her to play, though; it hurts her back to lean forward for too long and she gets tired much faster than before. Her movements slow and frustration builds until it develops into stress, which rears its ugly head in October, when she loses a competitive match against someone who isn't Arata, for the first time in a long time.

Everything comes crashing down at that point. When she gets home, she cries for an hour into Arata's shoulder and he holds her patiently, his head nestled atop hers, eyes staring worriedly at the wall.

"I don't know what to do," Chihaya admits to Chitose, a week later.

"Maybe you know what to do, you just don't want to admit it," Chitose replies. Her tone is clipped—it's always like this, when her little sister is a sniffling mess. She's not good with these situations. "Look, Chihaya, I know you don't want to but you've got to pick one or the other. It's either karuta or the baby. And you know which is more important."

The look in Chihaya's eyes is heart-wrenchingly hopeless. Chitose tries to soften the blow.

"It's only temporary. You can go back to karuta anytime—as soon as the baby's born, if you want to. It's a card game. You can't do that with the baby."

She's right, Chihaya knows. So for the first time in her life, she lets karuta go and retires her queen title.

She finds she's happier for it.

/

Arata approaches Chihaya, almost guiltily, three days after she's renounced her title and asks if he should also retire. She's just woken up from an afternoon nap and it takes her a moment before she processes the words that are spilling from his mouth. (His timing outside of the game has never been the best.)

"I want to be there for you and this is the best way to do it," he says.

There's more to it than just that. There are words that linger, unspoken, in his vocal chords; his expression speaks lengths where the words fail him. The way his brows crinkle above his eyes: he's concerned, that something will happen during the Meijin games. Miscarriages, premature labor, heaven forbid there be an _accident_—medical school taught him how lives can be saved, but also how they can be lost.

And then there is the way he hesitates. There is guilt there, from not coming to her sooner about this. From taking the time to wonder if he would be able to give up his title. His jaw is tight, steely; it's trepidation—of her response, most likely.

Chihaya doesn't even need to think. She already knows that he would drop everything in a heartbeat if there was even an inkling of a possibility that something happen to her or the baby. He already devotes the majority of his free-time to her. The answer is obvious.

So obvious that she gives him the most incredulous look and tells him, as loud and emphatic as ever, that he absolutely can't give up his title.

"You have to win!" She exclaims, and grabs his hands. Her eyes sparkle. "It will be good luck for the baby."

Arata remembers how to breathe again. He promises her a win.

(And he gets it.)

/

Their daughter is born in February, two weeks early.

Arata gets the call right as he's finishing up with a patient and zooms out of the practice with his colleagues hollering words of good luck behind him. Chitose and her mother take Chihaya to the hospital and meet Arata there. He's at his wife's side throughout the entire labor, a little pale in the face but holding it together. It's one thing seeing a patient in pain, it's a whole other to see your loved one hurting.

The labor isn't as long as he feared it would be. A few determined pushes had their baby entering the world, red-faced and crying, but otherwise healthy. Chihaya coos when the doctor eventually places the baby in her arms; she's both exhausted and glowing.

"Look, Arata," she half-whispers.

His glasses are fogged so he pushes them up, out of his face, and leans in to see the peaceful face of their child. The little one blinks back at him, her silence a stark contrast to her earlier cries.

"I—" He chokes and doesn't say anything more.

Chihaya laughs while the tears pools in the rims of her eyes. "Are we still keeping the name?"

He nods quickly. She hums, pleased, and shifts the baby in her arms. Her expression is infinitely tender. She gives Arata a minute to wipe his glasses and put them back on, then she motions for him to take the baby. He hesitates, at first, but finds himself cradling the tiny life form in his arms. The warmth that blossoms in his chest is quite unlike any other that he's ever felt before.

"Hello," he murmurs, "Akane."

/

Akane's birth brings about a lot of changes. For starters, Chihaya's mother moves in with them for the first month or so, and Arata's mother stops by often. Both of their fathers make the trip when they can, as do Chitose and Shinobu—the latter of whom has become somewhat of a sister to Chihaya in her own right. The two compete by buying baby clothes, Shinobu knowing full well that Chihaya is entirely prone to succumbing to any and all Snowmaru and Daddy Bear charms. (The irritated look on Chitose's face, every time Chihaya falls head over heels for some "dumb bear shirt", never fails to make Arata chuckle.)

Another thing that changes is their sleep schedule. There's no more sleeping through the night, now it's them taking turns getting up and checking on Akane whenever she cries. Arata rearranges his work schedule so he works less hours during the day and can spend more time helping out at home. Chihaya remains on maternity leave.

The lack of sleep and the work of taking care of a baby puts an extra layer of stress onto them, sometimes leaving them frustrated or tired. But it's all worth it, they find, when Akane smiles for the first time. Chihaya promptly bursts into tears and has to pass her daughter over to her mother, who is quick to smile right back at the little girl and babble praise. Arata also gets misty-eyed—he's no stranger to crying, but never quite so much in such a short period of time. Akane draws them onto an emotional adventure unlike any they have ever experienced.

At one point, after Chihaya's mother returns to Tokyo, Akane refuses to do anything but cry.

Arata and Chihaya try everything—they offer to feed her, try to put her to sleep, rock her back and forth, try and distract her, and even consider giving her a bath, but nothing pans out. Arata's bouncing her on his knee, babbling nonsense in attempt to appease her, when he suggests to his wife that they try using something else to get her to calm down.

The first thing that comes to Chihaya's mind is the DVDs that they bought, with the baby music on them. She zooms over and grabs the first one she sees, putting it on. Her heart nearly stops when, instead of singing sock puppets, the Shiranami Society's room flashes into view and Kana steps onto the screen. She takes a deep breath and begins to recite the Hyakunin Isshu.

Akane's crying stops abruptly. She goes still in Arata's lap and watches the screen for a while before growing bored and looking around to see what else she can play with. Arata sets her down on the baby mat and lets her roll over and grab at the toy blocks, shooting Chihaya an incredulous look.

Eventually, Chihaya ventures, all hopeful with stars peeking out of her eyes: "I think that's a good sign!"

Arata has, honestly, no idea. "Maybe it is," he says, and smiles a little when he looks back at their giggling baby.

/

Suou comes to visit Akane when she hits the four month mark. He meant to visit earlier, really, but he informs them that having a job means that he actually has to _do work_. He's a professor now, at the very university that was desperate to kick him out. How he managed to get a job there, no one knows, but they imagine the university was quite reluctant to hire him. For a professor, though, he isn't half bad—his students are very fond of him and appreciate that he takes the time to help them when they need it. He pretends not to care about them.

He doesn't bother to hide how enamored he is with Akane. She coos when he holds out his hands to her and grabs at his fingers, and is enthralled with the scrunchie he has holding up his hair. When he leans in and she swipes at it, making a silly babbling noise, Arata is pretty sure he can _see_ Suou melt.

"You could have been mine," Suou says almost wistfully, brushing his fingers against Akane's tuft of hair. There's a tiny quirk in his lips that shows he's only joking.

Shinobu, who is also visiting, isn't too convinced. She shoots him an irritated glance and then shoves him aside to take up the baby's vision. Akane is more than happy to let Shinobu be her entertainment.

Chihaya takes Akane away half an hour later to put her down for a nap. Arata stays with Shinobu and Suou for a moment—to play peacekeeper—but the moment he hears Akane screeching he jumps to his feet and excuses himself.

Shinobu watches him scramble out of the room. _Softie_, she thinks, and barely refrains from snickering. She exhales instead and leans back on her palms. The tatami is cool against her skin. She's tempted to close her eyes for a brief moment, but she knows better than to let her guard down—especially around dethroned royalty who can't keep his eyes to himself. She feels the back of her neck prickle from having his gaze pointed at her.

She tries—she really does—not to fall for the trap. But—

"What are you looking at?" She finally snaps.

He offers her a smile, the one that never fails to irritate her beyond belief, and says: "Akane-chan is a cute baby. I'm happy for them."

His comment pokes a nerve. Ferocity rolls off Shinobu in waves; a lesser man would quake at the sheer power of her aura. Her eyes narrow, and though she doesn't voice it aloud, every word she's silently communicating pierces him, one needle prick at a time. ("If you mess with their relationship, I will personally find you and string you up by your toes.") He flinches, barely, and then eases a grin back onto his face.

"You know, I haven't seen you in a while, Shinobu-chan," he says. "We should hang out again."

"We never 'hung out,'" she replies.

He's not fazed. "First time for everything."

"I don't spend time with people who don't play karuta," she deadpans.

"So, I can call you, then?"

She rolls her eyes and directs her gaze away from him. Bothersome. "Don't test me, old man."

Chihaya and Arata come back—looking a little frazzled—to find Suou frailly hiding a pout, looking utterly offended, and Shinobu smirking. Her eyes dance with amusement.

/

"I'm pregnant," Chihaya says, over coffee. "It's another girl."

"You're having another?" Shinobu responds. "Are you sure that's a good idea? You barely got enough sleep with the first one around."

Chihaya imagines back when Akane would move around too much and wake herself up, her wails drawing the attention of her father. She giggles into her coffee. Shinobu seems to be thinking something similar and snickers against her fist. They're both glad that Akane's nearly three years old and moved out of that stage, now.

"Congratulations," Shinobu says eventually.

Chihaya smiles her gratitude. She exhales and leans back in her chair, making her hands slip off the table and settle atop her stomach.

"I'm going to step down again," she says.

The admission is short, sweet, and leaves Chihaya without a trace of hesitation. It's easier this time around. She glances up to catch Shinobu's gaze, but the younger of the two is looking out the window instead.

"I expect to see you in a kimono next January, then," Shinobu says.

"The same goes for you," Chihaya retorts. A smile curls on her face.

Shinobu looks at her, indignantly, but smiles back all the same.

/

Their second daughter, Shiori, is born in April on a particularly rainy evening. Chihaya manages to keep her eyes open long enough to feed her baby once—and promptly falls asleep afterwards. Arata takes Shiori and rocks her in his arms until she quiets and follows her mother's example. He holds her for a little while longer before settling her into a bed.

Akane takes immense fascination in her younger sister, from the moment she's brought back to the house up until August when she decides that she knows everything about the baby. Shiori's fascination with her older sister never disappears in the same way. Chihaya sees a bit of herself in Shiori: always wanting to chase the older sister and step in the footprints they've left behind. Shiori is much quieter in her adoration than Chihaya is, however, and this complements Akane's louder personality very well.

Their friends come to visit Shiori much sooner than they did Akane, for two reasons: one, they've all reached points in their lives where they are far more settled than they were before, and two, now that Chihaya and Arata are more experienced as parents, they're also more prepared to receive guests earlier on in the baby's life.

Shinobu is, as always, the first friend to visit. Surprisingly, the second is Chihaya's old teacher, Miyauchi-sensei, who comes after Chihaya extends the invitation. The older woman became acquainted with Akane when she was about 18 months, which was lovely and great fun for her. Holding Shiori as a baby, now, is an entirely different experience and leaves her a bit awestruck and wondering.

"She's beautiful," she says earnestly, and when Akane's pouts quickly adds: "And so are you, dear."

"Thank you for coming." Chihaya beams.

In some ways, Miyauchi-sensei thinks, Chihaya is only an echo of her high-school self. But in others, she's still the same. It makes her heart warm to see that the clumsy, determined girl she used to teach has not only touched her dreams but wrapped her hands around them and become every bit the person she wanted to be.

_You're beautiful, too_, she thinks, looking at Chihaya tickling Akane's sides. She looks down at Shiori, who blinks back at her. "I expect you to keep an eye on them for me, and report back the next time I stop by, understood?"

Shiori giggles in her arms.

/

It feels like Shiori grows up even faster than Akane did. Time flies and before either of them know it, Shiori is 6 and Akane is 9.

Shiori takes after her father in personality, while Akane falls right into step with a young Chihaya. The latter is quick to speak without thinking and the former shakes her head and pokes fun at her older sister every time, without missing a beat. Despite all the teasing, the sisters very rarely fight and get along well.

One of the most fascinating things to Chihaya is that her daughters each have their favorite of her friends. Akane admires Shinobu like no other, often asking her to play karuta with her. (Shinobu never expected that she would ever go easy on someone, but then again, she'd never gotten to grow attached to someone's kid.) She spends plenty of time with Chihaya's high school friends, when they stop by. On occasion, she'll also ask Suou to play karuta with her, too.

For all that Suou gets along with Akane, he gets along with Shiori much better. He's fond enough of her that he lets her call him 'oji-chan' (his age is something he generally likes to ignore, but he doesn't mind this little girl saying it) and spend time in his office while he's working or sitting in on his lectures. She doesn't care much for the subject, but she likes listening to him talk and seeing him interact with his students. He brings her treats and in return she makes him scrunchies out of fabrics gathers and paints herself. He often wears them to his classes. Every time his students point out the oddness of their professor wearing such a flamboyant hair tie, he informs them that they're just "jealous brats" and assigns them extra reading. They learn to compliment him on the scrunchies, instead, and find class to be much more enjoyable.

Chihaya and Arata are fine with the uncle-niece relationship the two have going on, making trips to Tokyo more frequently than before. Shinobu remains forever skeptical but reluctantly admits that if Shiori's happy, then it's probably okay. Suou likes to tease that she's just jealous that one daughter likes him better than her—which usually leads to him receiving a smack on the arm and a sharp glare. (It never seems to stop him.)

Both girls, however, adore Harada.

Because he is retired, he comes by on a regular basis to visit with his "favorite rising stars" and plays with them as much as his aching joints will allow. He basks in the praise they give him, especially when they call him "their favorite person ever."

He stops by one February afternoon in passing—he's on his way home from visiting an old friend—and finds himself utterly at their mercy when Akane gives him chocolate, the same way her mother did. He puts a hand on his hard and very dramatically states that he will accept the chocolate, but cannot accept her love because he is a taken man—and Akane giggles at his theatrics and tells him she wanted to give him chocolate just because.

Shiori doesn't give him chocolate, but instead stares at him for a long minute before telling him, very sincerely: "Purple is a good color. You should wear a purple hakama. I'll make it."

He hugs them both so tightly they screech and giggle that they can't breathe, but don't particularly mind when he doesn't let them go for a minute more. He ends up staying the night, at Chihaya's insistence—and the girls' pleading, although Arata was never going to say no—and plays with them until well past their bedtime.

/

Chihaya is hopeless at scrapbooking, but she still takes a page out of her father's book and begins collecting moments of her daughters. When her parents stop by to pay their grandchildren a visit, her father takes the time to help her paste in the pictures and the firsts. Akane's first card, her favorite card, a picture of her at her first tournament—her book fills quickly. Shiori's first card is also placed in hers, as well as her favorite, but there are only two pictures of her at tournaments. The competitive side of the game doesn't connect to her the way it does the rest of her family.

Naturally, this worries Chihaya. She struggles to find an opening to connect with Shiori at the same level that she does with Akane.

"Be patient," her father advises with a fond smile. "She'll figure out her passion soon enough and she'll let you know. She's just like you—taking her time."

Chihaya gives him a skeptical look and then glances over her shoulder to where her children are playing with their grandmother and their father. She hears Shiori shriek with laughter when her grandmother grabs her and spins her around, and then hears her own father chuckle by her ear.

_Maybe he's right_, Chihaya thinks, and lets her worries go.

/

Having kids means that Arata and Chihaya get less time to talk to each other alone, so they learn to appreciate the few hours they have together after they put their kids down for bed. More often than not, Chihaya takes some of that time to finish grading papers and to prepare lesson plans, while Arata cleans up in the kitchen or goes over his schedule for the next days, reacquainting himself with his patients.

They always spend at least twenty minutes, every night, right before bed, to just talk. After Chihaya goes to check on their kids once—they're 10 and 13, sharing a room, entirely prone to talking for half the night if their parents don't catch them—she comes back and flops onto the bed.

"Arata," she says, "I told myself I wouldn't be worried, but I'm worried."

"About what?" He asks, setting his papers aside. He's tucked comfortably under the covers.

"Shiori," she mumbles into the sheets.

"How come?"

"_Because_—I just—I mean, do _you_ know what she likes to do?" She lifts her head to stare at him pointedly. When he shrugs, she sighs. "That's what I mean! Akane is easier to read, because we both know how much she loves karuta. But Shiori…"

Arata tilts his head. "Ah," he says. "Are you worried that she doesn't like karuta?"

"No, no, it's not like that. I know she likes it—and she's good at it—but she… she doesn't like it the way we do." Chihaya lifts herself up and crawls onto the bed. "If you were to compare how much Akane likes karuta to how much Shiori likes it—you just can't! It's like—comparing Pluto to Jupiter! Or the moon to the sun!" Chihaya exclaims.

This is oddly poetic, Arata thinks, but doesn't mention it. He's a bit preoccupied with trying to make sure that she doesn't step on him as she tromps all over the sheets.

"I think Akane _knows_ what Shiori's passion is, too, but she won't tell me," she grumbles.

"Maybe we should wait for Shiori to tell us herself?" Arata suggests.

"Well, of course. I'm not going to force her to tell me," Chihaya says.

Arata looks a little lost at this point. Chihaya picks up on it and sighs, dropping onto the bed and then clambering under the covers and situating herself close to him. She twines her legs around one of his and he reaches down to lace their fingers together.

"I just want to be able to support her the way I do Akane, but I don't know how," Chihaya sighs.

He drops a kiss onto her hair. "I think you wanting to support her is enough; she'll come to us soon enough, when she's ready, and then we can support her from there."

"I guess you're right," she mumbles.

"I have my moments," he replies, and leans over to turn off the lamp.

/

"So, um, by the way, karuta isn't really my thing."

Shiori, who's just turned 12, admits this in the most off-handed manner possible, when it's only her and Chihaya sitting at the table. Arata is in the kitchen, washing dishes, and Akane is out with a friend of hers.

"I mean, don't get me wrong, I like karuta but I don't like the competition. I'm, um, a fan of the poetry, not the game. Do you know what I mean? I don't want to be the queen like Akane does. I want to do something else." Shiori hesitates, then plows forward again. "You know how you're Akane's idol because you were the queen and all? I love you a lot, but Aunt Chitose's kind of mine—because I really like fashion. But I don't want to be a model, I want to be a designer. I want to make clothes. Kimonos are, um, something I want to work on; I want to design ones inspired by the karuta cards, and… yeah. That's it. Okay, good talk."

At this point, Shiori wants to flee the table. Her mother is staring, with her mouth slightly agape, the way she always does when she's shocked. She half expects her to burst into tears or to call for her father and ask where they went wrong or maybe even inquire if she _really_ means what she's saying.

What she doesn't expect is her mother leaping across the table, knocking aside the napkin holder and the salt and pepper shakers, to grab her daughter's hands and emphatically pronounce her support and admiration.

"That's wonderful!" Chihaya exclaims. "Chitose will love to hear that! You should talk to Kana, she can help you get started. In fact, I'll talk to her and let her know! I bet she'll want to see you right away!"

"Wha—you're not upset?" Shiori asks, dumbfounded.

Chihaya shakes her head quickly, giving her daughter's hands an extra squeeze. "I'm happy, and I'll support anything you want to do."

It's at that moment that Arata comes running out of the kitchen, drying his hands with a towel (they're still dripping wet from doing the dishes), to see what the commotion was about. He clues in on his wife and younger daughter, the former's belly flat against the tabletop, and pauses long enough to take in the sight and blink in a rather confused fashion.

"Is… everyone okay?" He asks.

"More than okay," Chihaya states. She's beaming and there's glitter in her eyes.

"Okay," Arata says, smiles crookedly, and goes back to his dishes. Chihaya will tell him everything later, he reasons, and that's good enough for him.

Chihaya looks at her daughter again and Shiori smiles at her mother, mimicking the very same look that Arata had been given just seconds prior. Her happiness is infectious.

(When Chihaya calls her father to tell him the news later that evening, he laughs and says: "I told you so.")

/

The scrapbooks fill quickly and before long, Chihaya dedicates an entire section of her bookshelf to them. Her scrapbooking skills improve with time and practice and pretty soon, she isn't scrapbooking with her father because she needs the help, but rather because she likes the company.

"Look at this," she says excitedly, pulling out one of the books and flipping it open. "Shiori started pressing flowers that inspire her and let me put some in here. This one's called a forget-me-not."

"My, she's even craftier than you are," her father says. He grins at her mildly offended glare.

"And here's a picture of her painting fabric, and a sketch of her first kimono design, and here's one of her and Kana-chan picking out colors—oh! Dad, did you know, Shiori's dream is to make a kimono for Akane that she can wear when she becomes queen?"

"Their dreams mesh together nicely, don't they?"

Chihaya hums. She traces the outlines of a family photo they had taken the last time they went on vacation. Her fingers linger at the corner. Her father smiles at the fondness of the motion.

"If your daughters keep going at this rate," he says, "you'll have to dedicate an entire shelf to them."

"I'd dedicate an entire room to them," Chihaya says earnestly. "And I may need to, at the rate I'm going."

Her father chuckles. He watches as she flips back to the front, where on one page there's a series of cloth squares and on the other, a picture of Shiori and Akane together with him and his wife. Chihaya flips the book shut, then, and reaches for one of Akane's.

"I'm proud of you, Chihaya," he says quietly.

Chihaya stops, surprised, and turns. He puts his hand on her shoulder and smiles.

/

Sometime, years and years later, Chihaya and Arata find themselves walking outside of Omi Jingu, hand-in-hand. While Arata gazes at the crackling silhouettes the trees make against the sky, Chihaya takes a moment to set her sights on the shrine itself. The red is as vivid as it has always been, blinding and awe-striking, and the beams still lift the roofs to towering heights—she remembers, once, when this place held all her fears and her dreams. Somehow, looking at it now, it doesn't quite strike the same emotions. It sparks something warmer, something comfortable. The realization of this blossoms affectionately within her, and when she turns to tell Arata of this her voice catches in her throat. Arata picks up the quick intake of breath and redirects his gaze to catch hers.

"What is it?" He asks.

"You're glowing," she answers softly, and reaches to catch the red light filtering through his silver hair. The strands tickle her palm and the light splits through her fingers.

To her surprise, he smiles. "So are you. Bright red—the color of royalty."

"That's purple," she says. A giggle bubbles up in her; abruptly, she feels seventeen again, skirting the lines of romance and friendship. The hand that is twined with his tingles.

"I like red better," he says. "Let's make it the color of returning royalty. Or retired royalty."

She lets the giggle spill out, and the surprisingly delighted grin it draws out of him only makes her giggle harder. He gives it a moment before caving and joining her laughter. When they stop, Chihaya looks at him with fond eyes.

"Do you think we did good, Arata?" She asks, almost playfully, with a smile that's become far more teasing over the years.

Arata returns the smile and the gaze, and says: "I'll have to think on it."

Chihaya lets out an astonished bark of laughter and nudges him with her shoulder. He grins cheekily, like a boy, and pulls her closer. (They've grown up, so much, but some days they indulge in youthful antics and it's like they never grew up at all.)

Somewhere in the background, they hear Shiori call for them. Their heads snap in her direction at the same time and they pause when they see her and Akane wave for them. Chihaya's grip on Arata's hand tightens and the emotion that wells up in her throat burns sweetly. Their daughters are glowing—brighter than their parents ever had. The red that has always been theirs, that has never left them, dances around their children's figures and it's the most beautiful sight Chihaya has ever seen.

Arata gently nudges her forward—after he manages to compose himself, though she can still see a drying sheen on his eyes. Shiori's impatience gets the better of her and she runs over to grab her mother's hand.

"Hurry up!" she exclaims. "The match is starting soon. I think Akane's nervous."

And so she is. Their oldest is fingering the sleeves of her kimono and staring at the ground with a sort of fierce determination. Shiori makes a noise of dismay. The kimono—which is a tangerine color that fades into deep red, decorated with blooming white chrysanthemums—is one of her own design and she'd spent far too much time on it to have her sister fray the edges before she'd even had a chance to see it in action.

Chihaya comes up and cups Akane's cheeks in her hands. "You're going to be great, Akane. Just remember—it's not about winning or losing, it's about having fun. Show the cards how much you love them."

"If you play your best, you'll have no regrets," Arata adds, leaning over and resting his chin on his wife's shoulder. He smiles fondly. "We both believe in you."

"So do I," Shiori pipes. "Hey, how's this—I'll distract them, and you can snatch the cards from right under their noses."

"That's cheating!" Akane protests.

"It's not cheating unless you get caught," Shiori says sagely.

Akane gapes in disbelief at her sister's straight-laced expression—and then they both break down into giggling messes. Shiori takes Akane's hand and, beaming, leads her into the shrine. Arata does the same with Chihaya, but gives her a moment's pause; her girls never fail to leave her breathless. This time, it's because of their smiles.

Chihaya thinks her daughters' smiles are even more dazzling than the light.

The sweet burn is back again and she's squeezing Arata's fingers even more tightly, now. These are the moments she lives for—these are the people who are precious to her and she cherishes them even more than she cherishes karuta. The memories she makes with them are even more beautiful than the hundred poems, and the love she has for them is even stronger than the one she has for the game. And she's happy it's that way.

They go inside and sit down. Chihaya glances around the room; there are familiar faces in the crowd. Shinobu is seated a few people down, and Suou is hovering behind her. Arata has to stifle a chuckle because he can _feel_ the support they're directing towards Akane, as they watch her with unmoving eyes. Chihaya spots others she knows, but the majority of her high school teammates are not present in the room—but they are present in heart, she knows. She pictures Taichi, watching the game on television with his wife, and Sumire watching with Kana and Kana's mother, and Komano and Tsutomu and Tsukuba, all watching—

The reader steps up to the front of the room. Everything goes icy quiet. Shiori zips over to her parents and sits down beside her father. Akane faces down her opponent squarely, with a glint in her eye and a friendly quirk of the lips. Chihaya's heart flutters. Arata leans over, right before the reader starts, and whispers:

"I think we did good."

The reader's voice cracks through the ice like a ray of sunshine.

(Chihaya smiles.)

_fin_


End file.
